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Here They Come

July 31st, 2011

On Wednesday I noticed that one of the big tomatoes was starting to ripen. As I thought, it’s a Silvery Fir Tree. I’ve been picking a few Tess’s Land Race Currant and Sungold Cherry tomatoes, but no large tomatoes.


Saturday it was finally ready to harvest. I plucked it from the plant, brought it inside, sliced it and we enjoyed it on a sandwich with local bacon and homegrown arugula on homemade sourdough bread. BLT’s are the perfect summer meal, super quick, easy and so delicious – they’re even great for breakfast! Is there really a better way to enjoy your first tomato?

How do you enjoy the first ripe tomato from your garden?

27 Comments to “Here They Come”
  1. Sandy Jones on July 31, 2011 at 6:10 am

    The very first tomato of the season never makes in into the house. My husband and I will pick it, rinse any possible bird droppings off of it, cut in half and enjoy it right there in the garden. Once tomato season begins, anything is fair game. Love tomatoes on toast for breakfast!

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  2. Sue Nugent on July 31, 2011 at 7:00 am

    The chickens got it. And did I catch it from Pop. I had no idea the tomatoes were near ready, so I took a chance and let the chickens run loose, one more time,while I mowed. Mowing stirs up lots of bugs and they love following the mower.But who knew they would prefer half-ripened tomatoes over bugs.

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  3. Sande on July 31, 2011 at 7:48 am

    Mine are just barely coming in now too. I have some sungold cherry – probably enough today to oven dry a batch. And one nice sized Giant Belgium. My Silvery Fir Tree tomatoes are ripening but are full of disease and something is eating holes in them – slugs, maybe? But most of my other types are still very green. I am most excited to try the Japanese Black Trifele that I’m growing for the first time this year. It’s a beautiful plant, seems more disease resistant than most I have, and the tomatoes look like lovely big pears.

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  4. pam on July 31, 2011 at 7:56 am

    What a great bounty!

    Reply to pam's comment

  5. Pearls on July 31, 2011 at 8:03 am

    My husband put it in a egg white omelet. :)

    Reply to Pearls's comment

  6. Erika on July 31, 2011 at 8:15 am

    I love mine cut up in big pieces with a drizzle of olive oil, a splash of lemon juice and a pinch of sea salt. And that is all yummy goodness and homegrown heirlooms taste the best. My son and I tried a few different varities this summer and I have loved seeing how each tastes.

    erika

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  7. Melissa on July 31, 2011 at 8:20 am

    I started getting San Marzanos about a week ago- definitely planting more of those next year– they are amazing!

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  8. Allison on July 31, 2011 at 8:48 am

    Ahhhhh….. so jealous! I can’t wait. I have some so big they have to ripen soon!

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  9. Toni on July 31, 2011 at 8:50 am

    I think we always celebrate with BLTs. Although we usually put some onions on there, too, but BLOTs doesn’t sound too appetizing.

    Reply to Toni's comment

  10. KimH on July 31, 2011 at 9:34 am

    I thought I was growing some larger tomatoes but all I’ve found so far are large cherry tomatoes..

    We have been getting some large ones from our CSA group though & we too had BLTs.. YUM!!

    Reply to KimH's comment

  11. kristin @ going country on July 31, 2011 at 9:39 am

    A sprinkling of salt and straight in my maw. And I don’t share. Everyone knows better than to ask, even.

    BLTs are a puzzle to me. We never have the L when the Ts are ripe. They don’t naturally grow together in our climate.

    Reply to kristin @ going country's comment

    • Susy on July 31, 2011 at 10:26 am

      This year I have a good crop of arugula to make BLT’s with. Some years we just add eggs instead of lettuce if we don’t have any.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  12. tj on July 31, 2011 at 9:40 am

    …*applause*whistle*standing ovation*…Yay! Isn’t it exciting?! It’s funny ’cause when friends or family call and ask what’s been goin’ on lately I have to tell ’em, “we ate our first tomato!”…lol :o)

    …How do you keep track of which plants are what type? Do you have labels in the garden or do you have a garden sketch of what you planted and what type where? I would like a better way to keep track of what is what in the garden as next year I would like to do like you and try different heirloom types and such.

    …BLT’s are my all time fav’ sandwich and yours sounds delish’! That is exactly how I like to enjoy the first tomato altho’ I’m perfectly happy with thick slices on a plate with salt & pepper too… :o)

    …Enjoy your Sunday and blessings too…

    Reply to tj's comment

    • Susy on July 31, 2011 at 10:27 am

      I keep a chart of where things are planted. For the most part though I can remember which tomato is which by the way the plants look and the fruit. I only grow one type of roma and most of my beefsteaks are different colors. The other tomatoes I grow have very distinct foliage or fruits that make them easy to distinguish. I need to do a post on how I keep track and how I stake my tomatoes.

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  13. Daedre Craig on July 31, 2011 at 10:36 am

    Salt and pepper!

    Reply to Daedre Craig's comment

  14. sarah on July 31, 2011 at 12:02 pm

    Mild summer here. Again. Our tomato plants are not doing so well. We are enjoying a few any way we can get them. Otherwise we visit our local farmer’s market. I LOVE bruschetta and good BLT.

    Reply to sarah's comment

  15. Michelle on July 31, 2011 at 12:34 pm

    I love a BLT…one of my faves, and yes, for dinner! Or breakfast…or lunch…or…:)

    Our first tomatoes got turned into delicious salsa… SO yummy. I’ve got a lot of tomatoes coming…just now starting to turn red. I gave my mom a handful of green tomatoes yesterday for frying…I had to really NOT be selfish while plucking them off the vine. Who knew picking green tomatoes would be so hard?! lol

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  16. Sincerely, Emily on July 31, 2011 at 12:57 pm

    ohhh tomatoes. no more for us right now. My fav way to eat – sliced with salt. Also love toast w/cheese and tom on top, maybe a spread of basil pesto or just fresh basil too. now I am drooling.

    Reply to Sincerely, Emily's comment

  17. Rhonda on July 31, 2011 at 2:30 pm

    Our first tomato came in a couple of weeks ago — pink girl. One of my daughters and I just sliced it up and shared it. She and I are the only ones here that like tomatoes, so … more for us! Since that first one a couple of weeks ago, there haven’t been any more other than a few yellow pears. I’ve got my eye on a pink brandywine though. It looks like it will be ready sometime this week. :-)

    BTW … I made a couple of jars of the small batch refrigerator pickles that you posted the other day — EXCELLNT! I’m making another jar in just a few minutes!

    Reply to Rhonda's comment

    • Susy on July 31, 2011 at 3:08 pm

      We’ve been enjoying our batch of quick fridge pickles as well. They pair perfectly with our lunches of burgers or BLT’s.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  18. Kathy on July 31, 2011 at 2:33 pm

    BLTs of course!

    If you don’t normally have lettuce that late in the season, try successive plantings, about every 2 weeks, and choosing a more heat-resistant variety. Summer lettuce doesn’t last as long in the garden, but it is possible to grow it, even here in Colorado where we’ve been having 100-degree days!

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  19. MAYBELLINE on July 31, 2011 at 6:25 pm

    Most everything harvested is 1st enjoyed right in the garden.
    Tomatoes are really ramping up here.

    Reply to MAYBELLINE's comment

  20. Tammey on August 1, 2011 at 12:32 am

    Here in Tenn. we have had 93 to 100 degree weather off and on for the past 2 months. This has been tough on everything in the garden especially the tomatoes..I prayed and asked God to show favor on my garden and bless us with rain…and He has! So the “first fruits” of the garden..tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, and okra have gone to a wonderful friend of mine who does not have a garden. So..that is how we enjoyed our first tomato and everything else! I believe this will become a tradition in my little garden from now on.

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  21. alison@thisbloominglife on August 1, 2011 at 3:21 am

    I can smell tomatoes on my hands from your beautiful photos. For me, slice, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with good quality salt. Leave for half an hour (or less if I’m too excited) and serve on a good slice of sour dough. My mouth is watering as I type…only another six months and it will be my turn.

    Reply to alison@thisbloominglife's comment

  22. Karen in OH on August 1, 2011 at 2:23 pm

    I’m in Northeast Ohio as well. Silvery Fir Tree was also my very first ripe regular sized tomato. Isn’t that funny? Got my first one last week. I just sliced it up and put it on a salad. They are just so much more flavorful than the ones in the grocery store. It’s like night and day.

    Reply to Karen in OH's comment

  23. Nellie on August 3, 2011 at 4:13 pm

    Sadly, no tomatoes yet for me – still been chilly-ish here in Santa Cruz. They’re fruiting but not at all red yet. Yours look gorgeous!

    Reply to Nellie's comment

  24. Diana on August 8, 2011 at 1:07 pm

    The BEST way to eat the first tomato? Right there in garden (sometimes dunked in the kiddie pool to get it “rinsed”) and eaten like an apple. The juice all over face and hands and that amazing flavor just makes it late summer!!

    Reply to Diana's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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